Troubleshooting the Web Inbox in Cisco Unity Connection

The Web Inbox application provides access to voice messages and receipts stored on the Cisco Unity Connection server. The Web Inbox enables users to play, compose, reply to or forward, and manage Connection voice messages by using a web browser. It is installed on the Connection server during installation.

Task List for Troubleshooting Problems with Web Inbox

When the Web Inbox application fails to operate properly, use the following suggestions to resolve the problem:

If you cannot resolve the problem and plan to report the problem to Cisco TAC, you will be asked to provide information about your system and about the problem.

Web Inbox Error Messages in Cisco Unity Connection

In addition to browser error messages (such as “File not found” or “Unauthorized access”), users may see Web Inbox-specific error messages, Flash plugin error messages, Quicktime plugin error messages, and Tomcat error messages when signing in to or using the Web Inbox.

The four types of error messages that users may encounter are described in the following table:

Browser error messages

Browser error messages may indicate that the Web Inbox failed to install, the user does not have network access to the Cisco Unity Connection server, the browser is not configured correctly, or the user does not have the required security certificate installed (if the Web Inbox uses SSL connections).

Web Inbox-specific error messages

Web Inbox-specific error messages are displayed on the Sign-In page or another Web Inbox page, and typically indicate problems with user credentials or actions within the Web Inbox.

Quicktime Plugin error messages

Quicktime Plugin-specific error or warning messages are pop-up alerts that occur on pages that load the Quicktime plugin recording and playback controls. These messages typically appear the first time that the Quicktime plugin is loaded when you navigate to a page that contains the controls.

Tomcat error messages

Tomcat errors occur when there is a system error, such as file corruption or insufficient memory on the Cisco Unity Connection server. A Tomcat error message usually lists the sequence of application errors. Each exception is followed by a description of what the Tomcat service was attempting to do when the error occurred, and for some exceptions, a message explaining the error is also offered. The “Exception” and “Root Cause” sections in the error message may offer additional information about the problem.

See the following sections for information about these specific error messages:

Error Message: “Sign-In Status – Account Has Been Locked.”

When users encounter the error message “Sign-in status – account has been locked,” it is possible that the user exceeded the number of failed sign-in attempts that is allowed. (This limit is set on the System Settings > Authentication Rules page in Cisco Unity Connection Administration.) It may also be possible that the user forgot his or her credentials, or an unauthorized user attempted to gain access.

Use the following task list to determine the source of the problem and correct it.

1. To confirm that the account is locked, in Cisco Unity Connection Administration, go to the Users > Edit Password Settings page for the individual user, and select Web Application from the Choose Password menu. Under Web Applications Password Settings, you can verify the status of the user credentials to determine whether the password was locked by an administrator, there were failed sign-in attempts, or the password was locked after an excessive number of failed sign-in attempts.

File corruption at the time of installation or a Tomcat memory corruption can cause users to encounter the error message “Apache Tomcat/<version> – HTTP status 500 – internal server error.” To confirm that this is the cause of the problem, check the Tomcat error page for the indicated root cause for the exception. If an exception message similar to the one below exists, there is a file or memory corruption:

Error Message: “Site Is Unavailable.”

Error Message: “This User Account Does Not Have a Mailbox and Cannot Sign In to the Web Inbox. To Use the Web Inbox, You Must Have an Account with a Mailbox.”

If a user with valid credentials but who does not have an associated Cisco Unity Connection mailbox attempts to sign in to the Web Inbox, the user receives the error “This user account does not have a mailbox and cannot sign in to the Web Inbox. To use the Web Inbox, you must have an account with a mailbox.”

To correct the problem, create an account with a mailbox for the user. As a best practice, we recommend that Cisco Unity Connection administrators do not use the same user account to sign in to Cisco Unity Connection Administration that they use to sign in to the Web Inbox to manage their own Cisco Unity Connection account.

Users Cannot Access the Web Inbox in Cisco Unity Connection

When a user cannot access the Web Inbox pages, consider the following possible causes.

The URL is case-sensitive—Users can access the Web Inbox at the following URL: http://<Cisco Unity Connection server>/inbox. Note, however, that the URL is case-sensitive.

The browser or client is not configured properly—When a user cannot access any of the Web Inbox pages, it may be that the user browser or client workstation is not configured properly. Make sure that the browser and client workstation are configured as specified in the User Workstation Setup Guide for Cisco Unity Connection Release 9.x. The guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/voice_ip_comm/connection/9x/user_setup/guide/9xcucuwsx.html
.

Internet Explorer 7 Users See An Extra Browser Window After Signing in to Web Inbox

When a user sees an extra window (a duplicate of the Web Inbox window, except without the Web Inbox controls displayed above the message area) after signing in to Web Inbox in Internet Explorer 7, do the following procedure to eliminate the extra window.

When a user presses the record button to compose a message for the first time in the Web Inbox, an Adobe Flash Player Settings dialog box is displayed, asking the user whether to allow the Web Inbox to access the microphone. In some cases, users who see this dialog box are unable to select any of the options in the dialog box, and are therefore unable to record audio for the message. To change the global Flash Player privacy settings so that the dialog box does not appear, do the following procedure.

Note In order to perform this procedure, the user must have access to the Internet to reach the Adobe Macromedia web site.

To Change Global Flash Player Privacy Settings to Allow the Web Inbox to Access the Computer Microphone

Step 2 In the Adobe Flash Player Settings Manager Website Privacy Settings panel, in the Visited Websites table, locate and select the website corresponding to the Web Inbox.

Step 3 While the Web Inbox site is selected, select
Always Allow
as the privacy setting. When this change is made, Web Inbox can access the computer microphone without prompting the user for permission.

Messages Are Not Displayed in the Web Inbox

If the Web Inbox does not display any messages for a user even though the user has messages in the folder being displayed, clear the browser cache. (Refer to the browser documentation for instructions on how to clear the cache.)

Sent Messages Are Not Displayed in the Web Inbox

In order for sent messages to be available to users in the Sent folder in the Web Inbox, the Sent Messages feature must be enabled. By default, the feature is not enabled. To enable the feature, change the Sent Messages: Retention Period (in Days) setting on the System Settings > Advanced > Messaging page in Cisco Unity Connection Administration to a value greater than zero. Note that because sent messages count toward user mailbox quotas, configuring a high value for this setting can cause user mailboxes to fill with sent messages if users do not regularly manage them from the Web Inbox.

Verifying That the Tomcat Service Is Running in Cisco Unity Connection

Do the following tasks to confirm that the Tomcat service is running and if necessary, to restart the Tomcat service:

1. Confirm that the Tomcat service is running by using either Real-Time Monitoring Tool (RTMT) or the Command Line Interface (CLI). Do the applicable procedure: